We recently returned from visiting Jenny and her family in Northampton
Massachusetts and - as I do every time we travel north to our daughter’s
adopted hometown - I can’t help but notice how different Western Massachusetts
is from Central Florida. Far more than miles
separate these two culturally, demographically, topographically and physically
diverse parts of the country.
Of the many physical differences between Central Florida and
Western Massachusetts, one of the most obvious is the radically different styles
of residential architecture. Homes in
Northampton are mainly wood-framed structures sided with painted clapboard or
shingles intermingled with fieldstone or red brick buildings.
Even in a downtown Northampton brick building, residents' make room for flowers |
The stucco-covered concrete block buildings that
line the streets in most Florida developments are non-existent in Jenny’s
quaint New England community. Actually, planned
developments, in general, are practically a non-entity as are the cookie-cutter
type houses we Floridians have come to accept as a given.
Instead of sprawling one-story structures like most
Floridian abodes, homes in Northampton tend to be multi-story structures. While some have garages (often detached) many
houses are without a covered parking space.
One thing they don’t lack, however, is a working fireplace. Chimneys are omnipresent – houses might even
have more than one - yet air conditioning, if present at all, seems like an annoying
afterthought. Freestanding units protrude
precariously from double-hung windows like stuck-out tongues registering disgust
at the very thought of hot weather.
Home’s ages differ too.
In Florida (which became a state in 1845), a house built in the 1950s is
considered OLD while in Western Massachusetts (statehood: 1788), houses that
have sheltered families for well over a century are commonplace. Entire neighborhoods in Northampton consist
of winding, tree-lined streets flanked by a stately assortment of just such highly
functional wood-framed antiques.
Large, boxy homes, often without garages (but with chimneys) line most Pioneer Valley streets |
My daughter’s house, built in the early 1900s, sits in such
a neighborhood. Its small lot is dotted with
tall trees and colorful perennials. Flower-filled
yards are as much a fixture in the Pioneer Valley (the area along the
Massachusetts border of the Connecticut River) as the old-time, wood-framed
homes they adorn.
On this most recent visit, the late summer blooms – or more
specifically, the bees that constantly buzzed in and out among the late summer
blooms – became the focus of my attention.
I couldn’t help but wonder why I saw so many more bees there than I usually
see back home in Florida, a state named for its floral displays. In a period when bee populations around the
country have being inexplicably decimated by CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder) why
were the Western Massachusetts honey bees and bumblebees so active?
Bee on unidentified pink flower |
I wondered if it could be because of all the flowers. Everywhere I looked, I saw blossoming plants. They filled up tiny front yards, backyards
and the sides of houses. They grew out
of planters, raised beds and in rock gardens.
Bright pink, white, yellow and blue wildflowers flanked roadsides and spread
across unplowed fields. In Jenny’s yard
alone, bees buzzed about her pink phlox flowers, slender gooseneck blooms and
several other pollen-filled flowers I was unable to identify.
Bee on chive flower |
Could the healthy bee population be a result of so many yards
filled with flowering plants or was the explanation more complex?
The Pioneer Valley is a youthful, dynamic region home to five
colleges. Farmer’s Markets and CSAs are
plentiful, recycling is routine and a plethora of Subarus, Priuses and Toyota
Matrixes boast bumper stickers pronouncing “Be Green,” “Coexist” and “Every Day
is Earth Day.”
With so much visible evidence of an environmental consciousness,
I wouldn’t be surprised if organic gardening was also widely practiced. If so, a reduced usage of herbicides,
pesticides and other potent chemicals might contribute to the health of bee
populations. Although it’s not
definitive, research suggests that many common garden chemicals can prove fatal
to bees.
I don’t know for sure why I saw so many more bees in Western
Massachusetts than I usually see around my own flower-filled, unsprayed yard
but I accepted the fact with pleasure. I
took many pictures of both flowers and bumblebees and enjoyed the phenomenon along
with the many other contrasts between my southern abode and this quaint New
England community.
Bee on another unidentified pink flower |
It’s good to go away and see other sights. It’s interesting to make comparisons, note different
styles of architecture, cultural diversities and topographical differences. It’s fun to challenge the mind to explore new
ideas and ponder the “I wonder why’s” but it’s even better to come back home to
the old familiar. We may not have as
many bees in my own adopted hometown, yet it remains the place I want to be.